Writing Systems

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CREDIT: Source for many of the following writing system slides:

a now-gone class website by Prof. Richard Sproat (University of Illinois/Champaign-Urbana)

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(Possibly) Independent Inventions of Writing

Sumerian: ca. 3,200 BC Egypt: ca. 3,200 BC Indus Valley: ca. 2,500 BC China: ca. 1,500 BC Central America: ca. 250 BC (Olmecs, Mayans, Zapotecs)

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PICTOGRAMS

Image removed due to copyright restrictions.

To view an example of a pictogram from Mesopotamia, circa 3000 BC,go to: http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/writing/home_set.html.

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Non-alphabetic cuneiform: Akkadian (S. Mesopotamia) writing system

1.phonogram: representing a consonant-vowel combination like ka, ak, kak

2.logogram: representing an entire word or concept.

3.phonetic complement: narrows down logogram pronunciation, indicate grammatical form.

4.determinative: indicates that an adjacent word is the name of a deity, a man, a city, etc. Not pronounced.

This image is in the public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

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ALPHABETS A sample of Linear B script, 1450 BC

Image courtesy of Sharon Mollerus on Flickr.

Deciphered by Michael Ventris (1922-1956), an architect and amateur linguist (assisted by John Chadwick, a classicist), who discovered that the Linear A texts are ...

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ALPHABETS

... Greek! —

written in a (somewhat imperfect) syllabary.

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ALPHABETS

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ALPHABETS

JAPANESE SYLLABARIES Hiragana

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ALPHABETS Katakana

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ALPHABETS

Cherokee syllabary, invented by Sequoyah (1770-1843)

a silversmith

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ALPHABETS

This image is in the public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

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ALPHABETS Phoenician (from ca. 1100 BCE)

http://www.ancientscripts.com

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ALPHABETS Ugaritic cuneiform alphabet

(W. Syria, ca.1300-1200 BCE)

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ALPHABETS In the 9th century AD, two Byzantine missionaries, the brothers Cyril (827-869) & Methodius (826-885), designed an alphabetic

writing system for the Moravian Slavic dialect.

This image is in the public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

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ALPHABETS

After Cyril's death, Methodius continued his work. The alphabet that Cyril and Methodius created is to this day

called...

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ALPHABETS ... the GLAGOLITIC ALPHABET

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ALPHABETS

Glagolitic Greek Cyrillic Glagolitic Greek Cyrillic [ɑ] А Α А [r] Р Ρ Р [b] Б Б [s] С C (Σ) С [v] В Β В [t] Т Τ Т [ɡ] Г Γ Г [u] У Υ У [d] Д Δ Д [f] Ф Φ Ф [e] Ε Е [x] Х Χ Х [ʒ] Ж Ж [ts] Ц Ц [z] З Ζ З [tʃ] Ч Ч [i] И И (H) И [ʃ] Ш Ш [j] Й Й [ʃtʃ] Щ Щ [k] К Κ К [ʊ] Ъ Ъ [l] Л Λ Л [ɛ] Ь Ь [m] М Μ М [e] Е Э [n] Н Ν Н [ju] Ю Ю [o] О Ο О [ja] Я [p] П Π П

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ALPHABETS Hangul: the Korean Alphabet

"The sounds of our country's language are different from those of China and do not correspond to the sounds of Chinese characters. Therefore, among the stupid people, there have been many who, having something to put into writing, have in the end been unable to express their feelings. I have been distressed by this and have designed twenty-eight new letters, which I wish to have everyone practice at their ease and make convenient for their daily use."

King Sejong (1397-1450)

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ALPHABETS Hangul consonants

Nasal Simple Aspirated Doubled

ㅈ ㅊ ㅉ ㄱ [k] ㅋ[kʰ] ㄲ

back of tongue raised to the velum

ㄴ [n] ㄷ [t] ㅌ [tʰ] ㄸ ㄹ[l] tip of the tongue touching alveolar ridge ㅁ [m] ㅂ [p] ㅍ[pʰ] ㅃ two lips ㅅ [s] ㅈ [ʨ] ㅊ [ʨʰ] ㅆ side view of the teeth ㅇ [ŋ] ㆆ [ʔ] (obsolete) ㅎ h [h]

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ㅡ [ɯ] "back"

ㅣ [i] "front"

ㅜ [u] ㅓ [ʌ] ㅔ[e] (ʌ + i)

ㅗ [o] ㅏ [a] ㅚ [ø] (o + i)

ALPHABETS

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ALPHABETS

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ALPHABETS Hangul: the Korean Alphabet

The letters are arranged in blocks that mostly correspond to syllables:

기 /gi/

김 /gim/

미 /mi/

민 /min/

-- giving the (false) impression that Hangul is a syllabary.

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Phonemic vs. phonetic The rule of akan'je in Russian

• In the syllable before the stress, or word-initial in an unstressed

syllable, /o/ becomes [a]: /nogá/ becomes [nagá] 'foot' /nógi/ stays [nɔgi] 'feet'

• In other unstressed syllables, /o/ becomes [a] (Belarusian and some Russian dialects) or [ə] (Standard Russian).

/góroda/ becomes [g ɔrəәdəә] 'of the city' (Standard Russian) /gorodá/ becomes [g əәrəәdá] 'cities'

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

Russian Belarusian sg. pl. sg. pl.

'foot' нога ноги нага ногi

'city' город города горaд гарады

'table' стол столы стол сталы

'windows' окно окна акно вокны

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Phonemic vs. phonetic Final devoicing in Russian

zero form -a form 1. grɔp grɔba ‘coffin’ 6. rɔk rɔɡa ‘horn’

2. lip lipa ‘linden tree’ 7. rɔk rɔka ‘fate’

3. ʃɔpəәt ʃɔpəәta ‘whisper’ 8. kəәrəәndaʃ kəәrəәndaʃa ‘pencil’

4. gɔrəәt gɔrəәda ‘city’ 9. ekipaʃ ekipaʒa ‘crew’

5. ruk ruka ‘hand’ 10. ras rasa ‘race’ 11. ras raza ‘time’

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Phonemic vs. phonetic Final devoicing in Russian spelling

zero form -a form 1. grɔp grɔba 6. rɔk rɔɡa ГРОБ ГРОБА РОГ РОГА

2. lip lipa 7. rɔk rɔka ЛИП ЛИПА РОК РОКА

3. ʃɔpəәt ʃɔpəәta 8. kəәrəәnda kəәrəәndaʃa ШЁПОТ ШЁПОТА КАРАНДАШ КАРАНДАША

4. gɔrəәt gɔrəәda 9. ekipaʃ ekipaʒa ГОРОД ГОРОДА ЭКИПАЖ ЭКИПАЖА

5. ruk ruka 10. ras rasa РУК РУКА РАС РАСА

11. ras raza РАБ РАЗА

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1. 'rope' [ip] [ipi]

2. 'louse' [bit] [biti]

3. 'reason' [sebep] [sebebi]

4. 'bunch' [demet] [demeti]

5. 'Ahmed' [ahmet] [ahmedi]

6. 'color' [renk] [rengi]

7. ʼhonorʼ [ʃeref] [ʃerefi]

8. 'pilot' [pilot] [pilotu]

9. 'wolf' [kurt] [kurdu]

Phonemic vs. phonetic Final devoicing in Turkish

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Phonemic vs. phonetic Final devoicing in Turkish spelling

1. 'rope' [ip] ip [ipi] ipi

2. 'louse' [bit] bit [biti] biti

3. 'reason' [sebep] sebep [sebebi] sebebi

4. 'bunch' [demet] demet [demeti] demeti

5. 'Ahmed' [ahmet] ahmet [ahmedi] ahmedi

6. 'color' [renk] renk [rengi] rengi

7. ʼhonorʼ [ʃeref] şeref [ʃerefi] şerefi

8. 'pilot' [pilot] pilot [pilotu] pilotu

9. 'wolf' [kurt] kurt [kurdu] kurdu

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Phonemic vs. phonetic English trisyllabic laxing

insane ɪnsejn insanity ɪnsænəәɾij

grave ɡɹejv gravity ɡɹævəәɾij

serene səәɹijn serenity səәɹɛnəәɾij

divine dəәvajn divinity dəәvɪnəәɾij

facile fæsajl facility fæsɪləәɾij

(fæsəәl)

virtuoso vɹ tʃuowsow virtuosity vɹ tʃuɑsəәɾij

not just about -ity: contrite ~ contrition mendacious ~ mendacity

Dearest creature in creation,

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

Study English pronunciation. I will teach you in my verse Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse. I will keep you, Suzy, busy, Make your head with heat grow dizzy. Tear in eye, your dress will tear. So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

Just compare heart, beard, and heard, Dies and diet, lord and word, Sword and sward, retain and Britain. (Mind the latter, how it's written.) Now I surely will not plague you With such words as plaque and ague. But be careful how you speak: Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;Cloven, oven, how and low, Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

...blah, blah, blah for umpteen more verses... ...we get the point! ...

Finally, which rhymes with enough– Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough? Hiccough has the sound of cup. My advice is to give it up!!!

—Gerald Nolst Trenite (1870-1946)

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Phonemic vs. phonetic Can you pronounce these words?

The balistanicacious pressure device

It was s imply clantific, as she liked to say.

Dr. Harriglon will see you to your room.

Would you some more gartiletti! I made t hem myself from free-range Wookies.

"And n ow, the tranya." - from the (original series) Star Trek episode

The Corbomite Maneuver

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

HI, MY NAME IS

TONY

HI, MY NAME IS

TONI

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

HI, MY NAME IS

ANDY

HI, MY NAME IS

ANDI

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Phonemic vs. phonetic

HI, MY NAME IS

BOBBY FISHER

HI, MY NAME IS

BOBBI FISHER

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Reading How fluent reading works.

Eyes fixate briefly on each word or pair of adjacent words(fixations are called saccades). Reading is routed through phonology: a "voice in the head". Some evidence:

• Tongue twisters take longer to read than non-tongue twisters... even in Chinese!

• The ability of deaf speakers to read oral languages such as English correlates with their degree of phonological knowledge.

• In normal reading in an alphabetic system, every letter is scanned and processed, though we do "error correct"...

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Reading

How fluent reading works. Exceptions are flagged and processed in a special way. Some consequences: • "Acquired dyslexia" after brain damage may impair

"decoding" (reading of regular spellings) but spare exceptions — or vice versa.

have vs. cave → deep dyslexia /hæv/ vs. "I don't know" or guessing (also: can't read non-words: stumped by bave) → surface dyslexia /hejv/, /kejv/ (can read non-words, but reads irregulars phonetically)

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Reading How should we teach children (or adults) to read?

The "Whole Language" movement of the 1990s:

"English spelling is so full of irregularities, it is very hard to teach, especially to young children. "Fortunately... we don't have to teach it explicitly!"

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Reading "We now know that learning to read and learning to write are a lot like learning to talk. We would think it funny if parents hovered over their newborn's crib, chanting the sounds of language one at a time. Parents are not trying t o t each l anguage, but rather trying t o co mmunicate with their child. They do not teach children individual sounds, but instead, use and sh are language naturally as a part of everyday ex periences. They respect and a ccept their baby's b abblings a s t alk. Although d ifferent from that of grown-ups, the child's language is celebrated and accepted without criticism. It is through constant interaction with family and friends--through using language and hearing others use it in everyday situations--that children learn to talk. Our research has indicated that the same is true of learning t o r ead an d w rite. It is through co nstant interaction with family and friends. teachers and classmates-- through using reading and writing and observing others reading and writing in everyday si tuations--that children can learn to read and write."

(National Council of Teachers o f English, Elementary School Practices. 1994 brochure)

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Reading The "Whole Language" movement - part 2:

• English spelling is so full of irregularities, people couldn't possibly be attending to all the letters.

• Reading is a "psycho-linguistic guessing game".

• So teaching symbol-sound correspondences (in English at

least) is a waste of time.

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Reading Success of "Whole Language" in the 1980s

"We've begun seriously to affect legislative policy in states like Michigan and Kentucky as well as all of the provinces of Canada." [From a list of achievements of the Whole Language Movement: Jerome Harste (1993) "New Questions, Different Inquiries", in Carl B. Smith, ed., Whole Language: The Debate", Edinfo Press, p. 147]

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Reading

"As the information in this table reveals, in seven provinces (British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland/Labrador, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec) the only textbooks on the approved lists are those that subscribe to a whole-language philosophy... Unfortunately, in many provinces unless special permission is granted to do otherwise, schools are only permitted to purchase in quantity for classroom use textbooks that appear on the approved lists."

[Marvin L. Simner, "Beginning Reading Instruction: A Position Paper on Beginning Reading Instruction in Canadian Schools", Canadian Psychological Association 1993]

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24.900 Introduction to Linguistics Fall 2012

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